Kitchen Gift Ideas - Culinary Crafts

Wondering what to get for the chef, baker, or budding culinarian in your life? Try out these kitchen gift ideas.

Whether you are looking for the perfect holiday gift or you just want to make your own life in the kitchen a whole lot easier, Culinary Crafts has you covered. We asked our amazing culinary team to share the one tool or ingredient that has been the most valuable addition in their own kitchens.

Here’s what they said:

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Nishan—Executive Chef

My suggestion for a gift would be an 8″ or 10″ chef’s knife, 2000/5000 grit whetstone, and a honing steel.

There’s probably no tool in the kitchen I use more than my knife. A solid chef’s knife will handle most tasks in day-to-day kitchen prep, and the honing steel will keep the knife working properly for years. The whetstone also helps me keep the knife as sharp as it was on the day I bought it.

For home use, I recommend Mercer brand knives. They are relatively inexpensive, easy to sharpen, and last a long time, so they make an excellent value.

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Jerome—Chef de Cuisine

My kitchen gadget is a Jaccard meat tenderizer. It’s one of my favorite things I’ve adapted from my professional to personal life. In addition to tenderizing protein, it’s perfect to use before marinating for the flavors to really penetrate, and to expedite how long it takes to brine meat.

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Brandon—Culinary Director

I recommend a Vitamix Immersion Blender. From soups to vinaigrettes to a thousand other recipes, a stick blender in your home will change a daunting task into the easiest thing to do in the kitchen.

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Dardree—Head Baker

My best Christmas gift was a Bosch Mixer. I made bread for years, mixing it by hand. Finally, I saved enough money to purchase a Bosch Mixer for myself as a Christmas gift to me. I still use the same Bosch Mixer after 28 years!

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Chris—Sous Chef

If you don’t want to spend time dicing vegetables, a food processor can make dinner preparation a snap! It can make dips, dressings, or spreads in seconds. I use mine especially when I want things very finely chopped, like graham crackers or nuts, but the attachments make it perfect for so many uses.

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Ryan—Chief Operations Officer

Other than using fresh, flavorful beans, a high-quality burr grinder is the single most important part of making great coffee at home. Of all the fancy coffee devices I have tried over the years, the grinders have proven to make the biggest difference. Unlike regular blade grinders that just bash the beans into random-sized pieces, a burr grinder mills them into a uniform size, giving your coffee a much more consistent flavor. If I were gifting one to a friend, I’d probably go with a Kinu brand, but Helor, 1Zpresso, and Hario also make excellent burr grinders.

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Bojan—Bar and Beverages Service Director

I think a juicer is a must-have for creating both fresh juices and amazing cocktails in your home.

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Kaleb—Chief Sales Officer

Besides being a beautiful addition to any kitchen, an end-grain cutting board is also a practical way to extend the life of your knives and keep them sharp much longer. If you’re going to invest in a good knife set, it just makes sense to take care of them.

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Kayde—Logistics Manager

We have loved our French finishing salts. They are so much more flavorful and improve almost any dish. We use French finishing salts so much that I got rid of my salt shakers and bought salt grinders instead.

Fleur de sel is wonderful, but it can be pretty expensive, so I use gros sel instead. Gros sel salt has larger crystals and a grey-green tint, while fleur de sel is clearer and has smaller crystals. You can buy either kind locally at the Food Nanny in Lindon.

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Clayton—Director of Event Operations

With a fat separator, there is no more fighting to get the delicious drippings from a roast, without getting the unwanted fat. Making a gravy has never been so easy!

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Meagan—Director of Marketing

My favorite of the kitchen gift ideas is a bench knife. I use mine to cut and divide breads, desserts, and candies. The way it fits in your hand makes it faster to use than a chef knife.

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Goretti—Back of House Event Team

For me, one simple thing that helps a lot is my Ninja electric pan. It lets me bake, broil, pressure cook, air fry, bake, sous vide, slow cook, proof bread, or even make yogurt. It has many wonderful functions that speed up cooking.

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(Image from cutleryandmore.com)

Tate—Event Manager

I personally use my Miyabi Artisan 8-inch chef’s knife almost every single time I prepare a meal. It holds its edge incredibly well and hasn’t chipped or warped even over years of commercial and home use. It really is the engine in the car of my kitchen, and it handles the work horse tasks of bulk processing and the detailed work along with its reliability and durability. The Miyabi Artisan is an absolute staple in my kitchen.

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Sara—Field Kitchen Manager

My favorite thermometers are from Thermoworks. I have purchased many for home/gifts/work. My favorite is their simple Dash. I love the cord and the magnetic back. It’s great for grilling and work. The fast accurate read is foolproof and gives a quick read without losing heat from an open oven.

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Danae—Field Kitchen Manager

One thing that made life in the kitchen much easier for me was a food saver that sucks the air out of containers. It makes the food stay fresh longer and saves money in the long run.

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Gary—Bar Logistics Manager

Ten years ago, I started using more cilantro in my home cooking. At first it was for the health benefits— cilantro is high in antioxidants and vitamins A and C—but soon it became my favorite ingredient for all kinds of dishes, from soups to salsas to guacamole. I love to make a Mexican margarita by muddling cilantro and fresh lime juice, adding simple (or agave) syrup and tequila, and topping it off with club soda.

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Marco—Event Team

A good set of kitchen shears is a cheap and easy way to upgrade your kitchen. Some tasks—like cutting open food packaging or slicing through bones—are too rough for your nice kitchen knife. Plus, if you get the kind of shears with a grip between the handles, they’re excellent for opening stubborn bottle caps or cracking nuts or shells.

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Kristine—Social Media Manager

When it comes to my ultimate kitchen tool, it’s gotta be my husband.

He’s the real MVP. He does pretty much everything that isn’t stirring, tasting, or taking credit for the recipe. From chopping onions without shedding a tear (or at least not showing it) to cleaning every single dish I’ve used while I’m still cooking, he’s basically the silent partner in every meal I make.

And let’s not forget his role as my personal ingredient supplier! He’s always running out for last-minute items I forgot. And somehow, the kitchen is always magically organized. If I’m being honest, I wouldn’t even know where the salt was without him.

Happy holidays

We hope our list of kitchen gift ideas sparks the pilot light of your imagination. From all of us at Culinary Crafts, best wishes to you and yours this holiday season.

Eat well!